Tarte á l’Oignon (French Savory Onion Tart)

I’m a big fan of the savory tart. Sometimes I think about starting a tart business, maybe a fresh frozen dough company, maybe opening a little tart stand where I serve savory tarts and salad. Anyhow, this is another tart favorite at home.  It makes the house smell amazing and the result is a super tasty dish. This recipe is a French Alsatian delight from my mother in law, Brigitte Helzer. For a perfect flakey dough recipe see below. Timing tip: Have savory dough ready – I like to have it rolled out on my tart pan then I keep it cold in the fridge til I’m ready for it. Vegetarian optional – cut the ham if you’d like.

Music: “Cabin by the Sea” by The Diskettes

Onion Tart Ingredients:

4-5 large onions, roughly chopped
1-2 tbs. unsalted butter
salt, pepper
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
2 slices ham or prociutto, roughly chopped
1 tbs. all-purpose flour
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 cup emmentaler, grated (could sub in some gruyere or swiss or other cheeses)

Method:

Preheat oven to 450
Heat butter over low-medium flame
Add onions, stir and cover to sweat
This is a good time to grate cheese, roughly chop ham or prociutto
Add ham or prociutto to sweated onions
Add flour
In a separate bowl, whisk egg and milk together
Turn off flame, add mixture to onions
Pull out your prepped dough, pour in onions
Generously sprinkle grated cheese on top
Bake at 450 for 20 mins, then reduce heat to 350 for another 20 mins, cheese and edges of crust should be golden brown
Let cool for 10 mins on cooling rack before digging in
Enjoy!

Savory Dough Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ tsp. salt
1½ stick butter
1/3 cup ice water (more if air is dry)

Method:

Combine flour, salt and butter in cuisinart or bowl
Prepare the dough
Add ice water slowly while pulsing in cuisinart until it gets clumpy
Gather the dough together, being careful not to over handle it (if overworked it won’t be light and flaky)
Place the dough in the fridge for at least 15 minutes before rolling it out. (It can be stored in the fridge for a couple of days or can be stored in the freezer for a couple of weeks. Just thaw in the fridge the day before you’ll use it.)